Bront Palarae Says He Lost His Voice Trying to Match Zul Ariffin’s Screen Presence
Actor Reveals Intense Filming Challenges During Tarung: Unforgiven Production
KUALA LUMPUR — Bront Palarae revealed that he suffered vocal strain while filming the action movie Tarung: Unforgiven after pushing himself to match the intensity and charisma of co-star Zul Ariffin.
According to Bront, whose real name is Nasrul Suhaimin Saifuddin, the situation happened because he wanted the chemistry between their characters to appear convincing and balanced on screen.
The 47-year-old actor said Zul Ariffin’s strong on-screen presence forced him to elevate his own energy and vocal projection throughout the filming process.
“Zul has a very powerful charisma. I wanted our performances to feel balanced in the movie, so I tried to follow his energy and vocal strength,” he said.
According to Bront, the biggest challenge was not only the physically demanding action scenes but also the emotionally intense dialogue delivery that required consistent vocal projection.
“If he only uses facial expressions or his stare, I can still handle it. But once his voice comes in too, the atmosphere completely changes,” he joked during the gala night press conference for the film recently.
He also admitted that he does not come from a theatre background and never learned specialised vocal techniques for handling intensive filming schedules.
According to him, the lack of vocal training caused his voice to become strained after going through multiple demanding scenes involving shouting and emotionally heavy dialogue.
At the same time, Bront said he always gives full commitment during filming even when the camera is not focused on him.
He explained that every actor must perform seriously in order to maintain the emotional intensity and realism of the film.
“I don’t like giving half-hearted performances. Even when the camera is focused on another actor, I still give the same level of energy,” he said.
He added that several scenes required overnight filming sessions that continued until early morning hours.
According to Bront, some filming sessions only wrapped around 3am because of the demanding action sequences and lengthy dialogue scenes.
Although he became concerned after experiencing voice problems, he said the production team constantly monitored the cast’s condition throughout filming.
He added that support from the production crew helped ensure the filming schedule continued smoothly.
Tarung: Unforgiven tells the story of a violent power struggle within a secret criminal organisation known as Marga, featuring betrayal, conflict and intense combat sequences.
Besides Bront Palarae and Zul Ariffin, the film also stars Mierul Aiman, Aedy Ashraf, Amir Ahnaf, Azira Shafinaz and Sharifah Sakinah.
The movie, directed by Razaisyam Rashid, officially premiered in cinemas nationwide on May 7, 2026.
-wilayah.com.my
